Hamilton’s Jackson Square is ready for a second look. The downtown shopping mall and its adjoining commercial office towers – 100 King Street West, 120 King Street West, One James Street North, and the Robert Thomson Building – was built as an ambitious revitalization project in the early 1970s.
The development was led by the Real Group of Companies, a joint venture between Yale Properties of Montreal and Manulife Financial, and was named for former Hamilton Mayor Lloyd Jackson.
Real Properties has managed the complex since the beginning, from the much-anticipated grand opening in 1972, through the economic challenges of the late 1980s, to the bustling retail and commercial hub it is today.
From the street, Jackson Square looks like any mid-century multi-use complex. But step inside, and you’ll soon discover that it offers every modern amenity along with a few pleasant surprises.
“It’s the space itself that makes us unique,” says Jocelyne Mainville, leasing manager for the Real Group of Companies. The 390,000-sf Jackson Square mall is 93 per cent leased. It offers everything an office user might need.
The mix includes Nations Fresh Foods supermarket, Goodlife Fitness, a post office and full-service banks, as well as licensed restaurants, food kiosks, retail shops, downtown Hamilton’s only LCBO, and the newly-renovated Landmark Cinemas.
The adjoining Jackson Square office towers provide a total of 1.1 million sf of commercial space. Current tenants include three levels of government, professional services, and inbound call centres. Units range from 398 sf to 52,000 sf contiguous over three floors.
“The floor-plates are column-free,” Mainville notes. That makes the space very efficient when it comes to office design, she explains, enabling tenants to create a tailor-made work environment – whether it’s a traditional office layout or a funky, open-concept loft.
Commercial tenants may use the Jackson Square Conference Centre and also enjoy dedicated, high-speed connectivity, modernized elevators, upgraded common areas and washrooms – and some of the best panoramic views in the city.
They also have access to the mall’s rooftop courtyard, which spans four city blocks. “We call it The Plaza,” says Mainville. “It’s a green space right in the heart of the city.”
The urban oasis hosts lunch-hour concerts and office BBQs, providing a welcome break from the office routine. “It’s something you won’t find anywhere else,” Mainville says.
For more information about Jackson Square, click here.
Read the full Perspective Hamilton 2017 feature here.
